Former U.S. Rep. Bob Beauprez and his wife Claudia along with other Coloradans sing the national anthem as the Republican National Convention convened in Tampa in 2012. (Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post)

For several weeks now, Colorado politicos say Republican Bob Beauprez has been making calls about a potential run for governor. On Saturday, gubernatorial candidate Tom Tancredo called Beauprez.

“I heard he was thinking about it again,” said Tancredo. “I told him to get in. He is a friend and a good guy.”

Tancredo and Beauprez served together in Congress. Despite their friendship, Tancredo said he never said he would drop out of the crowded GOP race if Beauprez got in. Tancredo is one of at least seven Republicans running for the GOP nomination for governor.

Beauprez could not be reached for comment; a family member said he has a new cell phone number but she can’t divulge it.

“It is true that Beauprez ran for Colorado Governor in 2006 and lost in a year that was devastating across the map for the GOP,” Red State’s Eric Erickson wrote. “But Bob has stayed in the conversation and is highly respected across Colorado. He can build the alliances none of the other candidates can.”

GOP congressional candidate Lang Sias, a Navy pilot who fought in the first Gulf War, today took exception with his own party leader’s remarks about Afghanistan and President Obama.

“With respect to Chairman Steele’s recent comments, no American president chose this war; rather, it was launched against us nearly nine years ago by Al Qaeda and, by extension, their Taliban hosts,” Sias said on his Facebook page.

If he’s such a student of history, has he not understood that, you know, that’s the one thing you don’t do, is engage in a land war in Afghanistan? Everyone who has tried, over 1,000 years of history, has failed.

To begin, whatever you think about his politics, one of the refreshing things about Ken Buck is his straightforwardness. In an interview or conversation with the Republican primary candidate for the Senate, he comes across as legitimate. You feel like he believes what he’s saying; at least, that’s been my experience and I haven’t yet heard any objective observer counter it.

That call-it-like-I-see-it quality comes through in this wide-ranging interview between Buck and the Colorado Statesman, conducted much earlier this month, but out today – and destined to make a little news.

Joey Bunch has been a reporter for 28 years, including the last 12 at The Denver Post. For various newspapers he has covered the environment, water issues, politics, civil rights, sports and the casino industry.